P.F. Chang’s is a very popular chain of Chinese restaurants in the US, and now they have decided to hop over the pond and crack the UK market. Was it any good? Time to find out...
Ideal for:
Dinner before catching a theatre show in Central London
Dinner in large groups – the menu is extensive
Date night
Ambience & Décor
The cosy interior is very nondescript and uninspiring. There are many shades of wood, varying from mahogany to beech but one can tell they put all their money on the food than the décor. The low level of lighting is designed to create an ambience but the raucous packed atmosphere did not really match the intimate vibe PF Chang’s was trying for. For me the restaurant was too loud. Nothing special as yet.
Service
The service was terrible. Firstly, we had an extensive wait to be seated despite having a reservation. Strike 1. The waiter was incredibly dismissive when we tried to grab their attention. Strike 2. We communicated our displeasure at the poor service and the manager got defensive and blamed the “busy night”. Strike 3. I do not care how busy you are, a restaurant should be able to seamlessly function at full capacity, and PF Chang’s crumbled. Be warned readers!
Food
Handmade Pork Dumplings (right) were not soggy but they did lack inherent flavour in the pork filling. The soy and chilli mash was needed to liven it up. Also for £10.50, I wanted more than 4 dumplings.
The Mongolian Beef was flank steak pieces that were overcooked and chewy. Sadly the dark soy and spring onions could not mask that. Therefore the beef was very average, and for the price, very overrated
The Fried Rice was actually delicious and thankfully there was a lot of this as I needed to eat a lot of it to fill me up.
Sesame Chicken (left) was the first of the mains and this was a delicious dish. The three-sauce mixture had the X-Factor that made the chicken come alive. The accompanying veg added some balance and wholesomeness. Overall a fantastic dish with ample portion.
P.F. Chang’s had all the attributes of challenging the more well established Chinese restaurants in London, but the miserable décor, raucous vibe, terrible service and average food meant that for the price, even a half decent local Chinese could compete. The only reason I would come back is because the menu has some tantalising dishes. Very disappointed and therefore giving P.F. Chang’s a D rating.
Photos of P.F. Chang's and more can be found on Instagram here.
Final grade: D
Final comment: Average food, terrible service and drab décor. Room for improvement.
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